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Convicted Killer Charged With Swiping Catalytic Converters From School Buses In Fair Lawn Convicted Killer Charged With Swiping Catalytic Converters From School Buses In Fair Lawn
Convicted Killer Charged With Swiping Catalytic Converters From School Buses In Fair Lawn A habitual offender was charged with stealing $18,000 worth of catalytic converters from school buses in Fair Lawn, authorities said. The pricey parts were swiped from vehicles at the Scholastic Bus Company depot on River Road shortly before 6 a.m. June 13, Fair Lawn Police Sgt. Brian Metzler said. Johannes Vanwageningen, 37, of Bloomingdale was identified as the thief by Fair Lawn Police Detective Chris O’Shaughnessy with help from Butler Police Detective Jarred Schmiedhauser. Vanwageningen is known to police, having served time for aggravated manslaughter and been arrested several times …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Murder Defendant In Paterson YMCA Stabbing Takes Deal, Pleads Guilty to Lesser Charge Murder Defendant In Paterson YMCA Stabbing Takes Deal, Pleads Guilty to Lesser Charge
Murder Defendant In Paterson YMCA Stabbing Takes Deal, Pleads Guilty to Lesser Charge A 34-year-old Paterson man admitted stabbing another city resident dead at the local YMCA. Jasmir Cleaves, 34, originally was charged with murder in the killing of Gabrae “Brae” Sams Jr., 29, in a fifth-floor hallway of the Y on Ward Street last Aug. 6. Police responding to the call fought to save Sams’s life. He was later pronounced dead at St. Joseph’s University Medical Center. Cleaves took a deal from prosecutors rather than face trial, pleading guilty to aggravated manslaughter in Superior Court in Paterson. Judge Marybel Mercado-Ramirez scheduled sentencing for Sept. 20. Whatever t…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Man Pleads Guilty In Deadly Hunterdon County Truck Stop Shooting: Prosecutor Man Pleads Guilty In Deadly Hunterdon County Truck Stop Shooting: Prosecutor
Man Pleads Guilty In Deadly Hunterdon County Truck Stop Shooting: Prosecutor A Texas man pleaded guilty to a deadly shooting at a Hunterdon County truck stop, authorities announced. David L. Rodriguez, 45, pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree aggravated manslaughter on Wednesday, June 22, Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renee M. Robeson said in a release. Rodriguez, of Alamo, Texas, shot Ricardo Menezes De Castro multiple times at the Pilot Travel Center truck stop convenience store in Union Township on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2021, DailyVoice.com reported. De Castro was taken to the Hunterdon Medical Center and later died. Rodriguez is scheduled to be sentenced on …

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
Jersey City Man Admits Killing Roommate: Prosecutor Jersey City Man Admits Killing Roommate: Prosecutor
Jersey City Man Admits Killing Roommate: Prosecutor A 28-year-old man admitted stabbing his roommate dead in their Jersey City apartment in 2020, authorities said. Tong Cheng pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated manslaughter in the death of Yuting Ge, 23, in connection with the Aug. 8, 2020 incident in their New York Avenue apartment, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said. Ge's lifeless body covered in gashes around 12:30 p.m., Suarez said. He was pronounced dead less than half an hour later..  Cheng graduated from Stevens Institute of Technology Graduate School, and Ge was a graduate student at Stevens. Sentencing…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Gunman Admits Killing 23-year-Old Jersey City Victim : Prosecutor Gunman Admits Killing 23-year-Old Jersey City Victim : Prosecutor
Gunman Admits Killing 23-year-Old Jersey City Victim : Prosecutor A 29-year-old Jersey City man pleaded guilty in connection with a 2020 shooting that left a 23-year-old man dead, authorities said. Kenyowa Pinkney admitted shooting Javone Smith near near Martin Luther King Drive and Myrtle Avenue the morning of Monday, April 6, 2020, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said. Pinkney on Monday, April 15, pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated manslaughter.  Pinkney surrendered to authorities days after Smith was pronounced dead. The incident marked the city's fourth deadly shooting in a seven-day span. Sentencing is scheduled before …

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by Cecilia Levine
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Abuser Admits Killing Ex-GF, Abducting Son In High-Profile NJ Amber Alert Case Abuser Admits Killing Ex-GF, Abducting Son In High-Profile NJ Amber Alert Case
Abuser Admits Killing Ex-GF, Abducting Son In High-Profile NJ Amber Alert Case UPDATE: An East Orange man admitted killing his former girlfriend and kidnapping their young son last summer in exchange for what prosecutors said will be a 30-year state prison sentence. Originally charged with counts that included murder, Tyler Rios, 27, took a deal from prosecutors rather than risk trial in what had been a highly-publicized Amber Alert incident. He pleaded guilty on Monday, April 4, to first-degree aggravated manslaughter for killing 24 year-old Yasemin Uyar on July 8, 2021, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel announced Tuesday. Rios also pleaded guilty to desec…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Boy Who OD'd On Bus Had Been Cleaning Uncle's Fentanyl Paraphernalia: Prosecutor Boy Who OD'd On Bus Had Been Cleaning Uncle's Fentanyl Paraphernalia: Prosecutor
Boy Who OD'd On Bus Had Been Cleaning Uncle's Fentanyl Paraphernalia: Prosecutor A 35-year-old man from Camden County has been arrested for causing the fentanyl-overdose death of his 12-year-old nephew, authorities said. The boy had been directed by Troy Nokes, 35, of Blackwood, to clean fentanyl paraphernalia before he passed out on a school bus on Jan. 24, according to Camden County Prosecutor Grace C. MacAulay and Gloucester Twp. Police Chief David Harkins. Life-saving measures were performed by the school nurse until EMS arrived and took the child to the hospital. He died of his injuries eight days later.  The child lived at a home in Blackwood, where Nok…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Driver Was Drunk, Speeding In Deadly Warren County Crash Through Upstairs Bedroom: Prosecutor Driver Was Drunk, Speeding In Deadly Warren County Crash Through Upstairs Bedroom: Prosecutor
Driver Was Drunk, Speeding In Deadly Warren County Crash Through Upstairs Bedroom: Prosecutor A Warren County man was drunk and speeding when he slammed his pickup truck into the upstairs bedroom of a local home, killing one and critically injuring another, authorities said Friday. John Nunn, of Mountain View Road in Washington, was charged with first-degree aggravated manslaughter, death by auto, aggravated assault, and other related offenses, Warren County Prosecutor James L. Pfeiffer said. Nunn sped past two cars before losing control of the pickup truck, veering off the roadway, crashing into a landscape feature, and going airborne just after 2 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 6, Pfeiffer s…

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
NJ Woman, 73, Who Gave Infant Fatal Magnesium Dose Has Treated People For Years: Authorities NJ Woman, 73, Who Gave Infant Fatal Magnesium Dose Has Treated People For Years: Authorities
NJ Woman, 73, Who Gave Infant Fatal Magnesium Dose Has Treated People For Years: Authorities A 73-year-old Guatemalan national living in Palisades Park who was charged with the death of an 11-month-old baby had allegedly been treating people in the area for years -- including the dead infant's older brother. Elida Medina-Ramos was charged earlier this week with aggravated manslaughter and illegally practicing medicine for giving baby Genesis a fatal dose of magnesium, olive oil and water to treat constipation, court documents show. Enma Medina, 38, who lives across town, took the infant to Medina-Ramos's home last Dec. 7 because the infant was sick, according to an affidavit o…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Vineland Driver Admits Drinking, Going 90 MPH Crash That Killed Family Of 3: Report Vineland Driver Admits Drinking, Going 90 MPH Crash That Killed Family Of 3: Report
Vineland Driver Admits Drinking, Going 90 MPH Crash That Killed Family Of 3: Report A Vineland man has pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter in a crash that killed three members of another family, NJ Advance Media reports. Modesto Pino, 37, admitted he had been drinking and driving at speeds exceeding 90 mph when he slammed into an SUV driven by Iban Garcia-Ruiz, of Bridgeton, on Nov. 1, 2020, the outlet said. Garcia-Ruiz and his wife, Elisa Perez-Hernandez, 32, were pronounced dead at the crash scene. Their two children were hospitalized and one of them, 1-year-old Ivan, later died. Last September, Pino was indicted by a grand jury on 15 counts in connectio…

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by Jon Craig
News
Palisades Park Woman, 73, Charged With Killing Baby Palisades Park Woman, 73, Charged With Killing Baby
Palisades Park Woman, 73, Charged With Killing Baby UPDATE: A 73-year-old Guatemalan national living in Palisades Park who was charged with the death of an 11-month-old baby allegedly had been treating people in the area for years -- including the dead infant's older brother. Elida Catalan-Medina was charged earlier this week with aggravated manslaughter and illegally practicing medicine for giving baby Genesis a fatal dose of magnesium, olive oil and water to treat constipation, court documents show. Enma Medina, 38, who lives across town, took the infant to Medina-Ramos's home last Dec. 7 because the infant was sick, according to an affida…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Jersey Shore Dad Pleads Guilty To Killing Infant Daughter After Beating Young Son: Prosecutor Jersey Shore Dad Pleads Guilty To Killing Infant Daughter After Beating Young Son: Prosecutor
Jersey Shore Dad Pleads Guilty To Killing Infant Daughter After Beating Young Son: Prosecutor A 23-year-old Jersey Shore dad serving prison time for abusing his 15-month-old son has entered a guilty plea in the death of his 6-week-old daughter, authorities announced. Austin Meli, of Wall Township, pleaded guilty on Thursday, Feb. 10 to charges of aggravated manslaughter, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey said. Officers responded to a home in Wall Township on March 9, 2019, on reports of an unresponsive infant. Meli's baby was rushed to the hospital where she was pronounced dead. In March 2020, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison for violently abusing his 1…

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by Cecilia Levine